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ER: The Oral History
ER the book is a deep dive into the show that began the modern medical drama phenomenon, and contains new and original interviews with over 60 people, including John Wells (showrunner of both "ER" and now "The Pitt"), Eriq LaSalle, Noah Wyle (from "ER" and now "The Pitt"), Laura Innes, Ming-Na Wen, and Goran Visnjic.
Long before "Jurassic Park" was the embryo of an idea in Michael Crichton's mind, there was "ER." A medical student who dreamt of a career in Hollywood, Crichton did what any aspiring writer he mined his own life to create a script based on his time working in a high-octane hospital emergency department. Of course, nobody wanted it. It wasn't until Crichton turned his attention to dinosaurs and his 1990 novel Jurassic Park became a mega-hit – and a mega-movie franchise – that Steven Spielberg asked the (now-former) doctor what other ideas he was kicking around. Producers weren't interested in Crichton's feature film idea. But, they were looking for new television series programming and thought there might be something even bigger in the concept than a movie. And, thus, "ER" was born.
Despite some resistance from NBC's top brass, the Warner Bros. Television drama became an overnight hit with its high-adrenaline storylines, realistic dialogue, and bona fide (not to mention hot) stars in the making in the cast, including Julianna Marguiles, Noah Wyle, Anthony Edwards, and an actor who didn't end up amounting to much named George Clooney. "ER" premiered opposite the popular CBS drama "Chicago Hope" and quickly cannibalized its competition. It would, in its heyday, net 35 million viewers per episode (in an era before streaming and DVRs), and was either the number one or number two most watched show on television for six years.
Over the course of its fifteen years on air "ER" would feature weddings, births, break-ups, death, and medical conundrums in just about every form you could imagine. Although stars like Clooney and Marguiles would come and go, "ER" introduced (or, in some cases, re-introduced) the world to actors like Mekhi Phifer, Linda Cardellini, Ming-Na Wen, Angela Bassett, and even a pre-"Housewives" Kyle Richards as a nurse. It won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama and was nominated a staggering 124 times. As popular as "Grey's Anatomy" is now, there would be no Meredith Grey without "ER."
A New York Times bestselling author of How to Save a The Inside Story of Grey's Anatomy, Lynette Rice covered "ER" during her days at Entertainment Weekly and The Hollywood Reporter and forged close connections with the show's cast, crew and studio/network executives.
Long before "Jurassic Park" was the embryo of an idea in Michael Crichton's mind, there was "ER." A medical student who dreamt of a career in Hollywood, Crichton did what any aspiring writer he mined his own life to create a script based on his time working in a high-octane hospital emergency department. Of course, nobody wanted it. It wasn't until Crichton turned his attention to dinosaurs and his 1990 novel Jurassic Park became a mega-hit – and a mega-movie franchise – that Steven Spielberg asked the (now-former) doctor what other ideas he was kicking around. Producers weren't interested in Crichton's feature film idea. But, they were looking for new television series programming and thought there might be something even bigger in the concept than a movie. And, thus, "ER" was born.
Despite some resistance from NBC's top brass, the Warner Bros. Television drama became an overnight hit with its high-adrenaline storylines, realistic dialogue, and bona fide (not to mention hot) stars in the making in the cast, including Julianna Marguiles, Noah Wyle, Anthony Edwards, and an actor who didn't end up amounting to much named George Clooney. "ER" premiered opposite the popular CBS drama "Chicago Hope" and quickly cannibalized its competition. It would, in its heyday, net 35 million viewers per episode (in an era before streaming and DVRs), and was either the number one or number two most watched show on television for six years.
Over the course of its fifteen years on air "ER" would feature weddings, births, break-ups, death, and medical conundrums in just about every form you could imagine. Although stars like Clooney and Marguiles would come and go, "ER" introduced (or, in some cases, re-introduced) the world to actors like Mekhi Phifer, Linda Cardellini, Ming-Na Wen, Angela Bassett, and even a pre-"Housewives" Kyle Richards as a nurse. It won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama and was nominated a staggering 124 times. As popular as "Grey's Anatomy" is now, there would be no Meredith Grey without "ER."
A New York Times bestselling author of How to Save a The Inside Story of Grey's Anatomy, Lynette Rice covered "ER" during her days at Entertainment Weekly and The Hollywood Reporter and forged close connections with the show's cast, crew and studio/network executives.
- GenresNonfictionMedicalHistory
320 pages, Hardcover
Published September 15, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 9, 2026
One of my favorite shows is ER. The Pitt comes so close to filling the hole left all those years ago when ER went off the air. It is one I did a full rewatch of not that long ago that left me feeling nostalgic and missing the greatness that was TV in that era. This book is a perfect look back with a more in depth look at not only the show but everything that went on around the show.
I was too young to really understand the full politics of what ER meant to the TV landscape or the importance of each of the actors that starred in the show. I remember the later years more vividly watching weekly with my family. This look back really told so much of the history on set, the actors and what it took to make the show what it was.
I listened to the audio as I will usually want to do when it comes to non-fiction stories. I knew that there wasn’t going to be the real actors voicing this novel and I think the narrator they did have for this production did a good job. It was a little hard to follow who was talking but the author did a good job of stating the actor and their characters numerous times in the interviews. A lot of the interviews were done through other sources gathered by the author to tell a full story and I thought it was well done.
If you are looking for a trip back to County General this is the perfect book for you. This one is out September 15th!
I was too young to really understand the full politics of what ER meant to the TV landscape or the importance of each of the actors that starred in the show. I remember the later years more vividly watching weekly with my family. This look back really told so much of the history on set, the actors and what it took to make the show what it was.
I listened to the audio as I will usually want to do when it comes to non-fiction stories. I knew that there wasn’t going to be the real actors voicing this novel and I think the narrator they did have for this production did a good job. It was a little hard to follow who was talking but the author did a good job of stating the actor and their characters numerous times in the interviews. A lot of the interviews were done through other sources gathered by the author to tell a full story and I thought it was well done.
If you are looking for a trip back to County General this is the perfect book for you. This one is out September 15th!
September 18, 2026
I love oral histories and this one is great. Hits all the high points, the on set and behind the scene stories. All the major players are there.
i wish they had been able to connect with some that were not in the book. I think some of those had issues on the set.
All in all, a great, quick read.
i wish they had been able to connect with some that were not in the book. I think some of those had issues on the set.
All in all, a great, quick read.
September 16, 2026
Review of advanced copy from Goodreads giveaway!
I have been a fan of ER since 2023 and when I found out this book was coming out I had to read it. Love the facts from the cast about the show and trivia! Some of which I did not know. If you’re an ER fan definitely read this book!
I have been a fan of ER since 2023 and when I found out this book was coming out I had to read it. Love the facts from the cast about the show and trivia! Some of which I did not know. If you’re an ER fan definitely read this book!
September 16, 2026
Thank you St. Martin’s Press for sending me a free copy!
The day ER: The Oral History arrived in my mailbox, I immediately started reading it because I needed a nostalgia fix to lift my spirits. I was a high school freshman when this hospital drama hit the scene and it was a juggernaut right out of the gate. NBC’s Must See Tv had us all staying at home on Thursday nights. Appointment television for sure with ER closing out the night. At its peak 30 million people were tuning in to see Doug, Carol, Carter, Benton and the rest of the gang.
Alright, so the book is a behind the scenes look at the popular show. It contains new interviews with about 60 people connected to the show as well as some older quotes taken from articles and other interviews during the heyday of the show. So basically you are getting everyone’s thoughts and memories about the show and what’s been said over the years. I’m a pop culture junkie so I was familiar with many of the stories but there was some brand new to me info especially about the later seasons. It provides a good overview of the series and was a fun, blast from the past type read.
If you are fan of show and enjoy insider look reads, it’s worth checking out.
The day ER: The Oral History arrived in my mailbox, I immediately started reading it because I needed a nostalgia fix to lift my spirits. I was a high school freshman when this hospital drama hit the scene and it was a juggernaut right out of the gate. NBC’s Must See Tv had us all staying at home on Thursday nights. Appointment television for sure with ER closing out the night. At its peak 30 million people were tuning in to see Doug, Carol, Carter, Benton and the rest of the gang.
Alright, so the book is a behind the scenes look at the popular show. It contains new interviews with about 60 people connected to the show as well as some older quotes taken from articles and other interviews during the heyday of the show. So basically you are getting everyone’s thoughts and memories about the show and what’s been said over the years. I’m a pop culture junkie so I was familiar with many of the stories but there was some brand new to me info especially about the later seasons. It provides a good overview of the series and was a fun, blast from the past type read.
If you are fan of show and enjoy insider look reads, it’s worth checking out.
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
I started streaming ER on HBO Max in August so I was super excited to receive this giveaway. The book includes trivia on how the show started that I had not known. Snippets of interviews with the actors, directors and producers. The format is well organized and an easy read.
September 16, 2026
Pretty awesome read (or listen in my case). Loved learning more about the behind the scenes of one of my favourite shows.
September 17, 2026
3.5 stars. A good insight into the show, but I just thought it was fine. Some good behind the scenes stories and I liked hearing from the actors.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews